The Constitution should be amended so the Federal Government can give money directly to local councils, Australian Local Government Association president Councillor Geoff Lake said today. “Local government believes that a referendum should be held during the next parliamentary term to consider whether a new financial power should be inserted in the Constitution to expressly enable the commonwealth to directly fund councils,” Cr Lake said. He suggested GST and income... Read More

Brisbane church member Constantine Drozdovskii chose public participation over prayer yesterday in an attempt to stop a development proposal casting a shadow over his local church. At yesterday’s Brisbane City Council’s meeting, Mr Drozdovskii urged council members to reject a development application that would see a 20-storey apartment block tower over St Nicholas’s Russian Orthodox Cathedral at Kangaroo Point. Mr Drozdovskii said his fellow parishioners were concerned... Read More

The Clem Jones Tunnel has already begun to improve city traffic flow since its opening last night, despite a number of problems caused by curious motorists and breakdowns. Lord Mayor Campbell Newman said 30,000 vehicles had already passed through the tunnel by 2pm today at the rate of more than 3,000 per hour, with traffic on the Storey Bridge down 15 percent at peak hour. “Lots of people are taking advantage of the free period,” said Cr Newman. But the Lord Mayor admitted... Read More

Lord Mayor Campbell Newman today lashed out at the Courier-Mail for downplaying the opening of the Clem7 tunnel. “The largest infrastructure project in this city’s history did not actually have a photo on the front page — it had a photo of a paddock,” he said. The tunnel opening story was relegated to an inside page following a stoush between City Hall and Brisbane’s daily newspaper over the council’s attempt to manage coverage. The Courier published... Read More

Brisbane City Council today approved $1 million funding for the development of Howard Smith Wharves despite Opposition questioning of the stabilisation method of its cliffs. Opposition leader Councillor Sutton said the proposed plan to cement the rock face would be ugly, “a quick, cheap fix — one that is not in the interest of the Brisbane community”. She slammed Finance chairman Adrian Schrinner for claiming the result would be exactly the same as the successful development... Read More

Chaotic scenes in Brisbane City Council chambers today followed the Lord Mayor breaking his long silence on suspended Liberal National Party Councillor Nicole Johnston. Nicole Johnston, Councillor for Tennyson since 2008, was last week suspended from the LNP until the end of the year on accusations including disloyalty and bringing the party into disrepute, an accusation which stems from a complaint from Council CEO Jude Munro that Cr Johnston did not pay due respect and courtesy... Read More

Highly accomplished teachers would be paid more under the Education Revolution, Deputy Prime Minister Julia Gillard has promised. Ms Gillard said higher pay had already started under the reforms, which would see some teachers paid more than their longer-serving colleagues. “The best teachers are being paid more to go to the schools that need them the most, a groundbreaking reform already delivered through the Education Revolution,” she said, using the example of Shaun Isbister,... Read More